[CALIBK12] Do you know this author?

[Jeri Chase Ferris]

Tom, Mary, and all,

I'm not too far from Sacramento, but don't know this author either – 
yet, anyway – and am an author myself (NF bios for MG, YA).

Tom, thank you for this nicely reasoned explanation of why she might be 
seeking school visits. I certainly give her credit for getting out 
there and promoting herself. However, I'd be interested in learning 
from those contacted whether that type of email solicitation has a 
positive or a negative effect. As did Tom, I'll leave the author's 
website to others to analyze,  but one of the most important reasons 
for an author to have a website is to make clear exactly what she does 
in her school programs.

Jeri Ferris
Award-winning multicultural biographies

www.jerichaseferris.com



On Oct 8, 2008, at 8:47 AM, Thomas Nixon wrote:

> Somewhat unrelated, but being an author myself (albeit of nonfiction), 
> I can tell you that there are a number of reasons why an author might 
> want to come to a school for free. They include:
>  
> 1. The ability to sell books to students.
> 2. The ability to sell books to parents.
> 3. The ability to sell books to teachers.
> 4. Building their "brand." Ask Christopher Paolini about this!
> 5. They used a small publisher (so no other publicity will be done).
> 6. The school, library, or bookstore is local (and, it appears, local 
> for her is the Sacramento area).
> 7. They enjoy sharing their story.
> 8. They are self-published (which is certainly not a problem; request 
> a copy of the book first). Again, see Paolini.
> 9. They are in your neighborhood. This is common; they have a paid gig 
> and they will tack on extra events.
>  
> And so on.
>  
> Having said all that, I looked at her website: 
> http://www.revacamiel.com/  I will leave the analysis to others, but I 
> find it fascinating that a children's author would use 'PhD' after her 
> name on the cover. Yes, she earned it, but in children's 
> publishing that is  beyond unusual to use it. Nothing 'adult' about 
> the site, though.
>  
>  
>  
> Tom Nixon
> --
> Teacher Librarian
> Tehipite Middle School
> 630 N. Augusta Street
> Fresno, CA 93701
> (559) 457-3420, x. 570
> Web: http://www.tehipitelibrary.org
> Blog: http://notyourmotherslibrarian.blogspot.com
>  
> From: calibk12-bounces at lists.sjsu.edu 
> [calibk12-bounces at lists.sjsu.edu] On Behalf Of MFischer 
> [MFischer at buckeyeusd.org]
> Sent: Wednesday, October 08, 2008 7:55 AM
> To: calibk12 at lists.sjsu.edu
> Subject: [CALIBK12] Do you know this author?
>
> The schools in my district have been receiving an email solicitation 
> from an author we do not know, requesting that we schedule her for an 
> author visit.
>  
> Does anyone know of Reva Camiel or her books? I have been unable to 
> get much information on her or her books other than what was in the 
> initial email. Her own website is blocked at our schools, supposedly 
> because of "adult language"! So of course I'm skeptical! My experience 
> is that authors who offer to come to schools free, and who solicit 
> widely, are not the greatest—but I would hate to miss a good one 
> because of a generalization like that!
>  
> Will appreciate any info you can share.
>  
> Mary Helen
>  
> Mary Helen Fischer
> District Librarian
> Buckeye Union School District
> Shingle Springs CA 95682
>  
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